Posts Tagged With: friends of Scouting

Back in 2009 I had an email exchange with a “Concerned Eagle Scout” about Friends of Scouting. As this month in our Council we are in full swing with our FOS campaign, I thought I would blow the dust off of this post and share it with you again. My thoughts are the same on the issue and Concerned Eagle Scout helped me demonstrate that where there is a will, there is a way.
What are your thoughts on Friends of Scouting?
Here is the post from 2009.Have a Great Scouting Day!

Mr. “Concerned Eagle Scout” has concerns about justifying FOS dollars.
And I can appreciate “Concerned Eagle Scouts”concerns. His biggest issue seems to be the cost of Scouting. Well.. let me share his email with you. And yeah… I moderated it.. took out some stuff that really did not add to the argument. And my comments are embedded in his email. My comments are in Bold text.

Jerry –

I have a real problem with FOS or what it should be called is SMJ (Save My Job). I and many others in our town have a real issue contributing funds to council when everything and I mean everything for scouting has become so expensive.OK CES (Concerned Eagle Scout), here is where you start in the wrong direction.
Everything in Scouting is getting expensive because things are expensive. But you do know that the Scout Shop (uniforms and supplies) are not part of your council and receive NO dollars from FOS. Salaries, benefits, and materials for running the Councils day-to-day operation is where the money goes.
We run a very effective program for our cub scouts and we do it all with the money we raise through popcorn. Like JC states, we have families in our pack that are experiencing financial hardship with the current economic situation. Welcome to the club.. things are tough all over. So don’t support FOS.. and watch your Scouting programs go away.How can we as scouts expect or even think of asking these families to put out more money when their having problems meeting their own financial needs. Well… how can I expect it.. I love Scouting. I can afford 42 cents a day for FOS.. heck a Scout is thrifty right. I collect cans and recycle them for FOS. You mean to tell me, you can’t do that? You mentioned running of the camps and the staff that supports them; how can I or any scout leader expect a family in financial hardship to pay $300 for camp (yes it costs that much in our council to send a boy to day camp)? Again, if that is the cost of doing business in your Council.. which seems a bit steep to me.. then that is the cost of doing business. Sell more popcorn.. have a car wash, participate in the candy sales and hold a Garage sale. Thrifty. Explain to me so that I can explain to my scouts and their parents why they should give to FOS when the top officers of scouting make over 140K annually. What Council are you in? I know that there is no one in your council that makes that much. Maybe at the National level, but then again… none of your FOS money goes to National. That’s almost double the annual household income for some of our scout families. Explain it to me Jerry so that I can justify it to my scouts and their parents. It’s this simple. don’t support it and you will have no Scouting. If your families are making 70,000 a year. Then you are doing better than most. So I would suggest you act like an Eagle Scout and remember your obligation you took to Scouting. Be Thrifty and Helpful and figure out a way to raise the funds. Families in our area make much less than what you have suggested and we keep our Council vibrant and healthy. Rather than make a bunch of excuses and whine… figure out a way that you can support Scouting. We have become very creative. Bake sales, car washes, dinners, etc. I’ve asked my local council for an explanation and they can’t or won’t give me an explanation, they just want the money. I do not think you are being intellectually honest here. Every Council brochure that I have looked at (via the internet etc) disclose where the money goes and how your dollar benefits the Council. If local councils want money to support the program and pay their paychecks, then they need to get the funds from corporations.You have heard about the FOS Community program right? They get money from your local corporations. That is what a lot of your DE’s time is spent doing. Oh and about 85 cents of every dollar from FOS goes to programs.. not paychecks. Endowments, and other funds are used for paychecks. At least in our Council, I can’t imagine your Council being to different. In my eyes and the eyes of other in our pack, families give enough to support scouting. I think you need to open your eyes a little wider and see the program for what it really is not as a target. I know times are tough, but that is no excuse for Scouting to suffer.
We all budget our time, energy and money. As we sit at our dinning room tables and work out our families monthly budget we cut what is not important and spend on what is. FOS is one of those items that we are not willing to cut because we see, directly, the value of our dollar.
We see that Scouting does good things… not just for my two sons, but for all the Scouts in my Troop. So I can assume that it is doing good in every unit.
I justify giving to FOS because I see the camps that we go to… in fact we camping at one of our Councils 18 fully paid properties this weekend. That can’t happen without FOS.
I look beyond emotion and look at real numbers. I can understand where you are coming from… really I can, but I think if you all took the time and penciled it out.. you could easily justify to your Packs families the benefits of making contributions to FOS. I am not sure where you get your numbers and information from, my guess is it is probably from another disgruntled Scouters. But my friend, you are an Eagle Scout. Somewhere along the way people paid and you benefited from this program. Give back. That simple.

Just my thoughts….Thanks for your thoughts.I hope that my comments do not come across as smug or unfriendly. It is a simple fact that no matter what, we need to do what we need to do to keep Scouting alive and well, if that means we give to FOS..then that is what we need to do. Call it something else…it still pays for Scouting.

Concerned Eagle Scout, I am not beating you up, I am calling you to learn more and really look at the dollars. It pencils out.. I promise you.

Like this:

I am going to tread lightly on this subject as I have some unpopular opinions when it comes to money and Scouting, but bare with me as I make an attempt to articulate my thoughts on this.
When we talk about money and Scouting there are always a couple of concerns. First, the cost of Scouting. It can seem overwhelming when a new parent is hit up with the initial cost of Scouting. The uniform, the handbook, and the gear all seem to drain a family in the pocket-book. Then there are dues, summer camp, and in some units the nickel and dimeing that is part of the annual program. Yeah, that can seem a bit too much, unless your unit is aware of this and makes an effort to either reduce the cost or have programs in place to assist a new young man stepping off on his journey in Scouting.
Let me say at the outset that there is absolutely NO REASON at all that every young man in America can not be a Scout. Money IS NOT an issue and at least in our unit will not become one. If a Scout has financial needs, we will accommodate, but no young man will be left out.
How do you do that? Well, let me share with you how our unit does it. Your mileage may vary on this and I am certainly not saying that we do it best or there are no other ways to do this.. I know what we do works and it removes the excuses about money in Scouting.
I challenge any parent, no matter what your economic status to argue that your son can not be a Scout because of money.
So having said that…
Number 1.
Get a good plan and with that plan, a budget.
Just like in your home, you budget to maintain your financial health. Your unit is no different. Our Troop committee has made it a practice to never say no to the PLC. If they plan it, the committee will figure out a way to support it. Now, before you think that we are stepping away from Youth led.. no, we are not. The Troop committee is responsible for the budget. They figure out how much the program is going to cost for the year and pass that on to the Scouts. They figure out seat belts, rentals, and fees and provide the Council level fund-raising opportunities for the Scouts to participate in. Once that is provided, it is up to the Scout to participate.
Number 2.
Announce the dues for the year and promise not to ask for another penny (save FOS).
This is key. Once the program cost is set we divide it among the members of the unit and that becomes the dues for the year. We never ask for another dime.
That number is typically around $200. The parents are given a complete budget break down of everything that the money is for. The Scout then has an option to make 3 payments to pay his dues. Note that I said the Scout has that option. The Scout is responsible for paying his way.
Number 3.
Offer the Council level fundraising opportunities. Pop corn, candy sales, etc. Our Troop also offers a Christmas Wreath sale opportunity. It is up to the Scout to participate and the unit does not do mass fundraising. It is up to the Scout to pay his own way.
Number 4.
A Scout is thrifty. He pays his own way. If the Scout chooses not to participate in the fundraisers, it is up to him to earn the money to pay for his year in Scouting.
Here is where the eye brows are raised and I catch flack from those not in our unit.
There are plenty of money earning opportunities out there. Mowing lawns, raking leaves, shoveling snow, walking dogs, baby sitting, house sitting, painting fences, odd jobs will certainly earn a Scouts way for the year, and then some. I am not expecting our Scouts to get a job in a spoon factory, I am just suggesting that they need to get off their butts and work for their year in Scouting. If that is payment for their chores at home or hitting their neighborhood and mowing lawns, the Scout needs to earn his keep.
I can not tell you how many parents I have talked to that disagree with that. As with most things in life, that which you earn you value. So we ask that our Scouts earn their way.
Number 5.
Accountability.
If a Scout fails to pay his dues, he is given notice that he can not participate. If there are circumstances which preclude the Scout from money earning we will talk. If a Scout participates in the Council fundraising opportunities, he is given the benefit of the doubt and given more time or opportunity. If the Scout has not made an attempt at money earning he will not. It is that simple. There are just to many opportunities out there not to at least cover basics.
Summer camp can seem to burden a family. We again ask the Scout to pay his way. If that does not happen, we find ways of funding the Summer camp experience.

Big money in Scouting.
I have heard many Scouters talk about not giving to FOS for one reason or another. And I am not going to go to deep into that. Lets just say those people for the most part are misinformed as to what that money does to have a direct impact on Scouts and Scouting. So give to FOS.
A couple of years ago I had the pleasure of representing our Council at the National Meetings of the Boy Scouts of America. I got to go to some work shops and meet a lot of the “heavy hitters” in Scouting. At the big Banquet dinner on Saturday night, my wife and I sat as they presented the Silver Buffalo awards. Someone at our table made the comment that those people purchased the Silver Buffalo and therefore it meant nothing. I disagree.
The fact that 10 people who that year each had made contributions in the millions to Scouting, most going directly to Scout camps, facilities, and scholarships impressed me. Scouting could not function without those dollars. The fact that they pay so the rest of us can essentially afford great programs impressed me. And I applaud them.
I am a member of the James E. West fellowship, and proudly wear my $1000 knot. Yeah, folks joke about that too, but at the end of the day, it is paying for Scouting. The James E. West fellowship endowment money is legacy money and will have lasting impacts on our Council. I can not give the millions, but what I can give ensures that Scouts can go to camp and have a camp to go to. So that too I would ask that you consider.
I am not going to debate how one Council or another manages their money, that is not my concern. My concern is delivering the promise of Scouting… and that takes money.
So Scouts can pay their way and we adults can support their effort and their program.
Money and Scouting can work. Have reasonable expectations, goals, and hold the Scouts accountable for being Thrifty.Have a Great Scouting Day!

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